hardMultiple Choice
SSCP Practice Question: A system administrator notices that a server's…
A system administrator notices that a server's certificate was issued by a CA that is not in the trusted root store of client machines. What is the most likely impact on clients connecting via TLS?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates assume TLS connections will proceed with reduced security or a warning, but in strict implementations (e.g., many browsers and modern applications), the connection is completely blocked rather than just warned.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Clients will receive a certificate warning or be unable to connect.
When a server presents a certificate issued by a Certificate Authority (CA) that is not in the client's trusted root store, the TLS handshake fails the trust chain validation. The client's TLS library (e.g., OpenSSL, Schannel) will either display a certificate warning to the user or terminate the connection with an error such as 'SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER' in Firefox or 'ERR_CERT_AUTHORITY_INVALID' in Chrome, depending on the client's security policy.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Clients will receive a certificate warning or be unable to connect.
Why this is correct
Untrusted root means the client cannot build a valid chain to a trusted anchor, so path validation fails. Browsers typically show a warning allowing override, while stricter clients abort the handshake outright — satisfying the stem's constraint that the issuing CA is absent from the trusted root store.
- ✗
The server will automatically obtain a new certificate.
Why it's wrong here
Certificate issuance is driven by the server's own key management or ACME client, not by client trust decisions; an untrusted CA does not trigger reissue. It tempts because automated renewal exists, but that requires a configured CA relationship and applies to expiry, not trust-store absence.
- ✗
Clients will connect but with reduced cipher strength.
Why it's wrong here
An untrusted issuing CA causes chain validation to fail, so clients abort the handshake with a certificate error rather than negotiate weaker ciphers; cipher strength is set by the TLS policy, not trust. It is tempting because trust and cipher configuration both live in TLS settings, but they are independent.
- ✗
Clients will be able to connect without any warning.
Why it's wrong here
Browsers and TLS clients validate the chain against their trusted root store, so an unknown CA produces a certificate warning or handshake failure, not a silent connection. It tempts because TLS still encrypts the session, but encryption without validated trust is exactly what triggers the warning.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This SSCP practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISC2 certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the SSCP exam.